Kalyn Josephson does it again, continuing Thia’s story in this satisfyingly dramatic duology ender, THE CROW RIDER. This book continues where the first left off, and sweeps the reader directly into conflict. We see Res the storm crow do his first magic! We see Thia’s relationships change and grow. We see her loyal friends (and my favorite, Kiva) being badass. And I gave a wee cheer when a character who uses They/Them pronouns came onto the scene. It’s one of my absolute favorite things about this duology—its inclusivity, the casual queerness that isn’t explained away or made to feel out of place. YA needs more of these non-heteronormative worlds, more characters who don’t identify as cis. My other favorite thing about this duo is Thia addressing her depression and self-doubt. I identified with her immensely throughout this book and highlighted so many passages. I can’t wait to reread when I get my finished copy and featuring its gorgeous cover in my feed.

And although I wasn’t rooting for this particular romance, I am so happy it ended happily. Very satisfying YA duology that I think young readers are going to love!

Wow, what a ride this duology was! 

If you follow me you may have heard me speak about how much I loved The Storm Crow last year. It was an engaging new fantasy world with fascinating lore and a fun love triangle that also took the discussion of mental health into a genre that extremely lacks it. I loved the beginning of Thia's story and I loved the end. I do have to admit I was a bit more engaged with the first book, but I do think The Crow Rider was a great sequel. I loved the relationships, the magic, the actions scenes. Some things were wrapped up a little earlier than I wanted and somethings didn't happen as fast as I wanted, but I still really enjoyed this book. If you are looking for a fun and quick fantasy with some important conversations imbedded in the story I highly recommend!

While this book follows in much the same vein as the first one, there is still something missing for me.
We are thrown back right where we left off, and if you, like me, have had quite a long amount of time between books, you will be lost.
This wasn't a great start in my opinion. It took me a long time to remember exactly who was who and what had been happening at the end of the first book, and think this could've been fixed by simply having a recap at the beginning of the book.
Of course, I could've reread the first one and immediately jumped into this one, but I didn't, and I don't think that many who pick this up on release day will have either.

The characters were fun, but I didn't get much of any vibe about the surroundings and the setting. I was most invested in Res' storyline in this book, and not much else.
I think this could've been worlds better with a simple recap (instead of an index/glossary) and more worldbuilding to really round out where we are and to further cement that in the readers head. It was hard to keep track of at times.

Overall, this book was okay. If you were a fan of the first book and remember what was happening at the very end clearly, then jumping into this one will be much, much easier.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

Wildly inventive, full of loss, hope, love, courage, trust, friendship, and GIGANTIC MAGIC CROWS! 
Did I mention the gigantic magic crows? Because seriously, that all you should need to hear to jump into this series.
The world building is clever and layered. It’s not just good/bad, it’s layers of history and socio-economics. It’s years of loss and pain and misunderstandings. Although I absolutely wanted Queen Razel to get what was coming to her, there are still reasons for her actions. Her losses and grief were real. I mean she definitely does NOT win awards for her parenting skills, but what Josephson gave us was a woman who believed that everything that she was doing was for the greater good. If you can have a bad guy, or a sword-wielding, badass Queen that you can understand as much as you dislike? Well, that’ is great storytelling.
Also, GIGANTIC MAGIC CROWS!
All in all, a beautiful end to the duology. 
5 bright as lightning stars.

Don't you just love it when a series you loved at the start end just the same? It's like everything is right with the world when you hit that final page. The Crow Rider is exactly that. It starts off with a bang, and ends on just the right satisfying note. 

This book picks up almost immediately after the end of The Storm Crow. Thia, her storm crow and her friends are on the run after nearly being captured by Illucia's tyrant queen, Razel. They are sailing to the other kingdoms in an effort to form an alliance that will take her down before she conquers the entire world in her quest for revenge. The world building in this really speaks to me. It's by no means a complicated fantasy world. It doesn't reach the epic battle/rebellion levels of, say, Red Queen, Crown of Feathers or An Ember in the Ashes, but it never fails to suck you in. Josephson has a very simple and honest style of writing that feels wholly familiar and accessible. It makes it very easy to read huge chunks in one sitting. 

A lot of what I loved in the first book is still here, and the Rhodaire crows are no exception. Thia's storm crow, Res, is the only crow left to her kingdom. He was hatched after the terrible attack that killed all living ones and their eggs, and Thia is trying to train him in his powers. But Res is an anomaly in that he doesn't have just one elemental ability, but all eight. Along with his storm magic, he also has battle, earth, and healing magic, to name a few. I love how much of a character he is! I mean, the boy is nothing if not dramatic. Flopping all over the place as a 6-foot-tall bird with "exhaustion," pretending to be injured to get out of work, and begging for food—it's hilarious. 

Thia is as great as she was the first time around. She struggles with depression once more, battling against its pull when things get pretty dark. She deals with feeling hopeless, being a failure in her mission, in helping Res, and in dealing with the people around her. Thia has been dealt many hard blows in the length of time this series takes place and it's truly admirable how she beats it back. She is truly indomitable and so very kind without it being a fault. Something I really liked with the first book was the number of strong female characters, and this sequel is no different. A sister who is a queen, a bodyguard who is loyal without question, a ship captain who won't hesitate to snap back, and princesses of foreign lands who need you to impress them. And then there's Razel, a nasty villain who knows just how to get under your skin. 

In my review of the first book, I noted that there was a dread love triangle incoming. It was just the seedling of one in the first book, and I figured it would come to a head in the sequel. Without spoiling anything, let me just say that I loved how it did actually end. I fervently wish more would do it this way because, again, no spoilers, it wasn't drawn out with pining and fighting. It kept straight to the point and earned mad respect from me. 

Now, I did love this book, but it wasn't quite a five star read for me. Two reasons. One, because of the Sellas. They are newly introduced beings in this book, and are very important to Thia's backstory and the history of Rhodaire. But it took a while for me to realize that because I found them to not be explained well. Thia learns of them through several different storytelling sessions and plot twist info drops, but I struggled to put it together. Two, I found that, while well choreographed and somewhat reminiscent of certain Lord of the Rings battles, the overall result of the end battle was a little disappointing.

Overall a great and very accessible fantasy duology that is thrilling to read from start to finish! 
Series rating: 4.5 / 5

I was so incredibly excited to have received an ARC copy of The Crow Rider after I adored The Storm Crow last year, and let me tell you this second and final book exceeded my expectations! 

I loved the direction that the story took with this book and oh my god, the ending was so great! I obviously don't want to get into spoilers or anything, but it ended so perfectly! I'm honestly crushed that this is only a duology because I still have questions I need answers to, and I just wasn't prepared for this to end. 

The characters are so amazing! Thia is honestly one of my favorite characters because even though she struggled with depression, she was brave and smart and truly cared about those around her and wanted to do what was best for everyone, not just her and her friends. Her crow Res had such a big personality and he was such a goofball, but also fiercely loyal and smart. Honestly, Res makes me wish more books had giant magical birds! I also loved Kiva and Ericen and how they both developed from the first book as well. 

My only complaint would be that I want more of this world and these characters! I want to see them rebuild and explore other kingdoms. There wasn't always a ton of description with locations and yeah, the world building was a little lacking, but it also isn't the main focus of this book. I'm always the person who says they want more world building, more descriptions, more immersion, but in this case the characters and plot were strong enough that I found that all that detail wasn't always needed.  I also wish we had gotten more on the Sellas, but I won't say more than that because I don't want to go into spoiler territory! 

I just wish we could've dragged this out a little more because I'm sad that this is it - the duology is finished and we probably won't get anything else about these characters. I can only hope that Kalyn will revisit this world sometime in the future and give us more!

3.5 stars
After recently finishing book one in the duology, I was curious and excited to see how the story would conclude and I'm glad to say that overall I found this to be a very satisfying ending to a series. We get more strong friendships, character growth, intriguing revelations, a fairly epic battle and plenty more magic! While there were still elements that bothered me, I thought this was more enjoyable than the first. Also, *yay* we get a map!

- With the world and most of the characters already established in book one, the pacing in The Crow Rider was significantly faster. Part of the story followed a training montage which I always enjoy as we get to see characters and their abilities grow. I liked that it wasn't unrealistic growth, too--Res wasn't able to all of a sudden wield his abilities perfectly at the end of the training and he wasn't the most powerful crow to ever exist. The battle scenes where we get to see more crow magic being used were great and since the magic aspect was my favourite part of book one, I'm glad we saw more of it here. I appreciated that things didn't fall perfectly into place; the characters really have to work through obstacles even in battle and the "bad guys" weren't magically vanquished.

- I loved that Res got his own 'personality'. He was quite the sassy little crow and he actually made the story much more enjoyable for me! I think out of all the characters I was probably most invested in his survival because he really grew on me 😂 This is something I never thought I'd say about a crow because crows... But he was too lovable to resist! I loved his attention seeking ploys, cheekiness and love for food. His indignant reactions had me laughing out loud quite a few times while reading!

- For the most part, I did still like Thia but I thought her character became less likeable in this book. She was quite selfish in a lot of her actions and while she acknowledged and apologised for some, it was frustrating. As a character who lives with depression, I thought it was selfish of her to react in anger and to not accept that someone else who went through the same thing she did, could be feeling the same way and perhaps is even suffering more. It made me want to give her a good shake :) Prince Ericen played a much smaller role in this book and I'm disappointed that we didn't get to see more of him. I felt he also became more of a prop to push the story along in this book.

- As it was in the first book, the romance was still my least favourite part. I thought the romance happened quickly in book one, but things devolved even faster here and it made me question the point of everything that happened before. It wasn't entirely unpredictable but the characters kind of waved it away, and it honestly made me wish that the romance wasn't part of the story! I can't get into it without giving spoilers so I'll leave it at that.

Overall, this was a pretty satisfying conclusion and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to read it. Although it took time for me to care for a lot of the characters and the world building wasn't very strong, I did enjoy this fast paced fantasy. I liked the representation of mental health because I still feel like it's not often that we see this rep in YA fantasy, and it helped me feel more empathetic and connected to our MC. Even though the romance wasn't my favourite, in the end I wasn't mad at how it wrapped up (because I'm a hopeless romantic and a big sucker for that HEA 🤷🏻‍♀️). I'm looking forward to seeing what else the author produces in the future!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Also special thanks to The FFBC for organising this blog tour and including me in it!

The Crow Rider questions the ethics of battles that are lost with another on the horizon. Revenge and sacrifice, Thia's story in The Crow Rider is one where she has to confront her own past. The mistakes of her family, her own promises, and the legacy she wants to have. Thia's character evolution, including her bond with Res, was my favorite element of The Crow Rider. Flung into a position of power and responsibility, Thia has to figure out what losses are acceptable to her, exactly what she will bargain for to get what she wants - what is best for her people.

The Crow Rider felt more politically active than the The Storm Crow. Not only does Thia have to figure out what kind of ruler she wants to be, but how she can fight for the future of her kingdom. It may be a journey full of hard truths, wondering if our love is our weakness, and our own value. I wasn't a huge fan of the romance in The Crow Rider, just because it felt like a piece of the story that wasn't given as much depth and detail. I think it would have been just as compelling without it considering how character and action focused this sequel was.

I adored the prequel to this, Storm Crow, when it first came out and was overjoyed that Crow Rider lives up to my expectations ❤

It did take a bit of reading for me to remember exactly what happened and who everyone was but my god once I was back in the world I did not want to leave 😍

We're lucky to be able to explore Res (Crow) and Thia's (protagonist) a lot more in this book and it's a truly beautiful thing to watch blossom and grow

The characterisation in these books is one of my favorite things particularly the discussion of depression and mental health and how it presented differently for different characters. 

I LOVED the extension of the world building and certain revelations that really pushed the whole story forward. 

I don't really have a bad word to say. Loved this book so much! 

Review will be live on socials by first week July.

I received a copy through NetGalley for reveiw.

I really enjoyed the Storm Crow, so I was interested in seeing where The Crow Rider was going to pan out as a duology. 
The last book ended with Thia fleeing with Res, her newly hatched Storm Crow.
And they have to learn to train together, to see just how far Res's powers go. If she can learn to trust her own instincts and Res's own powers.
Razel is still out to destroy her, and every other country in existence... She's a real woman hellbent on revenge and not a lot else. Her life goals seem to be - kill, maim, take over.
Thia has to step up and win alliances in this one. And find out who's with her and against her.

I wish there was more time in this for the characters to develop a little bit more, to learn about Res's powers more fully, about the Sella's (that honestly felt extremely rushed). They were there and then gone. The epilogue was nice, but I kind of wanted to know more about how things were going.

Overall it was solidly done, but didn't really leave me wowed. Just with more questions.

The Crow Rider is the sequel to The storm Crow, by Kalyn Josephson.

We follow the story of Thia (Anthia) a princess who lost everything when the enemy empire of Illucia attacked and destroyed Rhodaire. She will end in a forced marriage with the Illucian Prince to protect the last that remains of her kingdom. But after discovering the last egg of a magical crow she and her sister will trace a dangerous plan to hatch the egg and get back what was taken from them.

So, The Crow Rider starts whit Thia escaping from Razel and the Illucian empire along with Res, the magical crow. Now her only desire is to take revenge on her enemies.

The first book was just OK for me, it felt like a long introduction were not big things happened, so I expected for The Crow Rider to be something more and better. And it was!

In this conclusion we have a lot of action, some plot twist I didn't expect and a very good development of the story in general. But my problem was that I didn't feel connected in any aspect. I´m really sad about this, because I objetly recognize this book IS NOT BAD at all, just wasn't for me.

Anyway, I want to mention some things that should be pointed out:
1.	The great main character, who is a strong woman fighting against depression and her progress throughout the book leave us a powerful message.
2.	The world building that has some unique elements, like the magic system with the crows.
3.	The representation and diversity in the characters.

Thanks to Netgalley And Sourcebooks Fire for providing me this digital ARC.

I loved the first book on this series and couldn't wait until this book came out. I love the characters in this book as they keep growing and becoming more and more ingrained in to our hearts.

I hate that I have to rate this book three stars. I really wanted to like it, but the timing was just off for me. I also didn't do a reread of the first book, which was definitely something I had to do. Now, I was thrown in the middle of something, and I found myself looking for information from the first book throughout the whole of the story. I am really going to give this one another proper read!

I may have taken a long time to finish this book because of a slump but it was still so good!

The Crow Rider picks up from where Thia, who wanted no part in an alliance with the enemy, runs away from the crazy, murderous queen seeking revenge, to ally with the other lands against a war declared by the queen. This book tells the story of her journey in gathering her allies while training her crow to hone his abilities and hopefully win the war the queen promises to rain down on their kingdoms.

This sequel for me was a step up from the previous book. There was so much development in the world building as well as the characters. We got to travel to the different cities in this world and glimpsed a bit of their culture.

My love for the characters grew exponentially in this sequel. I love Thia’s stubbornness, Ericen’s quirkiness, Kiva’s roughness, Caylus’s softness and nerdiness, and of course, Res’ laziness.

Besides, spoiler alert... I was so so so excited to see Thia and Ericen slowly drawn and opening up to how they feel for each other. Omg.. from enemies-to-lovers! It’s my favorite troop!! But I can see how Ericen makes a better match than Caylus. And I’m glad that Caylus and Thia stayed as best friends although things between them ended pretty weirdly.

I am pretty satisfied with how this duology ended and wouldn’t have asked it to end any other way.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Sourcebooks Fire through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Okay, but where can I get my own giant, magical crow? Because that was the best part of the story. Not only are the crow's epic because of their elemental magic, but Res has his own personality. He made me laugh and he made me sad, and I love that he could be his own character

As for Thia, she's a wonderful YA protagonist. She's smart and strong, and while she makes mistakes, she admits and tries to do better next time. The way Kalyn depicts her mental illness is powerful as well because it's not a fight Thia wins permanently. It doesn't go away. It affects her every day, every decision, but she pushes through in order to help those she needs.

The new characters were great as well, and I love how many positive female relationships are included in this story. Even they aren't all perfect, the female characters respect each other enough to ally against a bigger enemy and it was awesome to see them all fight together. 

Some aspects of this felt a bit rushed and while reading, I assumed this would expand into a third book. But by the end, Kalyn ties everything together with a solid, satisfying conclusion.

This was such a lovely and emotional conclusion to this amazing duology. I have to say it was just as amazing as the first, the mental health issues aren't hidden away now that the Crow is around, and I loved that, and in fact, Josephson delves deeper into not only our MC's depression but different mental health issues of our other beloved characters and it made for a beautiful read. The romance story in this was perfection and I think my only complaint was Kiva's overprotectiveness of Thia, it was almost smothering and a bit annoying and I was the reader, not Thia! Anyway, perfection wrapped in gorgeous prose. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Crow Rider by Kalyn Josephson 

The Crow Rider is the sequel to The Storm Crow. I have to say I enjoyed the Storm Crow and the world that Kalyn had created, so I was very excited to read The Crow Rider. It didn’t disappoint. The story starts where it left off. 

Thia has set off on a journey with Res, and her loyal friends in tow, to persuade the other kingdoms to join her fight against Queen Razel and Illucia. At every turn something happens, battles and political manoeuvres. Thia soon realises that convincing others to join her is a lot harder than what she had anticipated. She needs to prove herself and show that she isn’t her mother and has learned from the mistakes made in the past. 

I love the continued training of Res throughout the book and learning about what he can do. The whole crow magic is amazing. I think Kalyn crafted something unique and interesting. 

I would recommend doing a re-read of The Storm Crow or a catch up before you start The Crow Rider, just to refresh your memory. I didn’t do this and forgot certain things and wished I had done a recap beforehand. However, I still really enjoyed it. I look forward to seeing what Kalyn releases in the future.

Title: The Crow Rider 
Author: Kalyn Josephson
Pub. Date: July 7, 2020
Rating: 4

This will be a spoiler free review. Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review. 

I read The Storm Crow last year, and thought it was okay. You can read my whole, non-spoiler thoughts here, but the gist was that it felt like a typical YA “take back the throne” fantasy and I couldn’t stop comping it to Eragon. 

I honestly wasn’t entirely sure I was going to read this book, but then I got approved for it on NetGalley. This book surprised me, in the fact that I really liked it. I thought it was a pretty strong way to end Thia’s story. I’m actually kind of bummed that it’s only a duology and there won’t be another book. 

I don’t know if I enjoyed this book more, because I barely remembered what happened in The Storm Crow and therefore didn’t remember it was comped to Eragon, or if maybe I was too hard on the first book. But whatever the reason may be, I’m actually glad I read this book. I’m actually tempted to buy physical copies of the series, because I thoroughly enjoyed this final installment. 

I liked Thia’s journey, the ups and downs, and learning to trust herself. I liked how even when all hope seemed lost, she stood up for herself, for her people and fought back. She made herself be heard. I freaking love Res and want a giant bird that acts like a mix of a cat and a dog. I loved Ericen and their back and forth. That boy has a mind that goes straight to innuendo at every chance. It’s hysterical. 

I loved the new friendships and bonds made along the way. Really the whole cast of this book is wonderful. OH, I almost forgot my love for Caylus. I'm thrilled with where that boy ends up at the end of this book. I wanted to hug him the entire time he had page time. I'm a sucker for an emotionally vulnerable male character.

I do think the plot felt a tad rushed. But I think maybe that’s just my desire of wanting more, wanting another book. It’s funny how my opinions of this duology has changed – from not knowing if I even wanted to read book 2, to wanting a book 3. I really want more time with Ericen and Thia. I can only imagine how their futures would play out. 

If you haven’t yet, go read The Storm Crow so you can be prepared for The Crow Rider when it releases on July 11. You have time, so go read!

I read the first book in this duology last year before it’s release, and I knew since then I wanted to pick up the next one. I adored the first book and found it such a lovely fantasy with a twist. The Crow Rider was no different, and I’m so glad I had a chance to read it!

It was so lovely to delve back into this beautiful world. Josephson does a brilliant job of describing the world and cities, honestly some of the passages describing the markets and cities took my breath away. I was immediately enveloped once again into this world of castles and beauty.

The writing was beautiful and I kept wanting to go back for more. Whenever I picked up this book I didn’t want to stop, there was a weird kind of comfort I remember from reading The Storm Crow that only comes with knowing how much you are going to enjoy a book. Another thing that came back was the openness when Josephson discusses grief and depression. I had forgotten how this was discussed and it impressed me over again, especially when I read a specific passage. Not enough fantasy talks about mental health and I admire how this one does.

The magic and crows were amazing as ever. I loved having Res as a full character, even though he is actually a crow. The way Thia communicates with him fascinated me, and every time anybody insulted him by calling him chicken or pigeon it made me chuckle.

The only complaint I had is I didn’t feel as much connection to the characters as I wanted to, and I felt confused by them. I didn’t know who was who, which made the war councils and politics difficult too and I mainly just skim read the political scenes. However, I think a lot of this was from the fact I read the first book almost a year ago, and I wouldn’t have felt so confused if I had only just read the first book.

Overall, this was a brilliant, emotional and utterly beautiful conclusion to this duology. I loved it and would definitely recommend the series!

★★★★
4 out of 5 stars

Princess Thia, her allies, and her crow, Res, are planning a rebellion to 
defeat Queen Razel and Illucia once and for all. Thia must convince the 
neighboring kingdoms to come to her aid, and Res’s show of strength is 
the only thing that can help her.

But so many obstacles stand in her way. Res excels at his training, until 
he loses control of his magic, harming Thia in the process. She is also 
pursued by Prince Ericen, heir to the Illucian throne and the one person
she can’t trust but can’t seem to stay away from.

As the rebel group prepares for war, Res’s magic grows more unstable. Thia has to decide if she can rely on herself and their bond enough to lead the rebellion and become the crow rider she was meant to be.

Now let’s get into my review, this was one of those sequels that is such a perfect counterpart to the first book that it is impossible to pick one book as a favorite over the other. I was also extremely pleased that this was a duology rather than a longer series (although I LOVE me some epic long series), in the span of these two books I believe that Josephson is able to create this visually stunning and rich world along with well-developed characters and an amazing storyline. Any extra books may have taken away from the story as a lot of writers who go for long series can tend to sort of muddle up the story and details. This will forever be one of my all time favorite duologies and when I tell you I cried happy tears at the conclusion, I am not exaggerating, it was just such a perfect culmination of all the events of both books.

Another factor that I really enjoy about this book was that there was not a tedious, chapters long recap of events. As soon as you begin on page one, you are in the action and it does not slow down throughout the book. So, for those who may not have the greatest memory (especially when reading dozens of books a year) a reread of The Storm Crow may be helpful- but to be 100% honest I (with the memory of a gerbil) did not have a problem. As I read, the characters and storylines just popped back into my head like there had never been a year pause in between. I adored watching all the relationships develop and mature (eh hem…Ericen) but what absolutely made the books was reading about Res maturing and learning his power. If he is not the absolute fictional embodiment of a moody, snarky teenager who just wants to snack and nap… but also happens to be a 6 foot magical crow, then I don’t know where else you will ever find a better candidate. Res is a mood all his own and I love him for it.

One last point that I really want to make during this review, is not so much to do with the fantastic story telling but with Kalyn Josephson’s fearless way of writing mental illness into her story in a way that is real. In the first book Thia develops crippling depression after the loss of her entire way of life (understandable). As a person that suffers from severe depression myself, I would personally like to thank Josephson for normalizing depression and mental health in her story, but not as some sad inescapable black whole, but as an extremely difficult struggle that through perseverance and the love and understanding of others anyone can recover from.